§ Mr. GapesTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assistance his Department is giving to sufferers from macular degenerative disease. [158337]
§ Mr. DenhamWe fund research into vision-related conditions through the Medical Research Council. They are currently funding several major research projects into macular degeneration, including a clinical trial at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast: "Radiotherapy in the treatment of subfoveal neovascular membranes (CNVM) in age-related macular degeneration of the eye" for which a grant was provided of £61,571. They have also provided a £1.5 million grant to look at "Genetic Susceptibility to Age Related Macular Degeneration."
We are also collaborating with the voluntary sector in developing low vision services for people who have lost vision as a result of eye diseases including macular 199W degeneration. This entails improving co-ordination between the hospital eye service where patients are diagnosed, community opticians who are capable of supplying low vision aids, social services departments who can help with aids to independent living and mobility, and voluntary organisations who can provide talking books, guide dogs. Nothing can do more to improve the quality of life for people with visual handicaps than prompt, effective collaboration between these agencies.